In the 90’s I was with hanging off a climbing tower with some colleagues and a boy named Nick.
Nick came for climbing camp had spent several dayts working through his fear of heights. This was Nick’s final day of camp and even though the rest of his cabin had gone on to dinner, Nick and one of his counselors stayed back so he could give the rappel challenge one more try.
Working outside in summer with hunderds of kids can wear you out. Friday at 5 o’clock usually doesn’t come fast enough. But for Nick all of the high adventure staff chose to stay. Harnessed up, we walked the climbing tower steps with him opened the top hatch and took in the view of little lake and the beginnings of beautiful fading sunset.
After we checked the repel components, Nick clipped in and turned around to face his instructors before he gave it one more go. After a pause he began to approach the edge. For him, that moment of being willing to trust his weight to the rope was terrifying. He had been here many times that week, never fully able to lay back, to trust his gear. The moment lingured, the fear was present. But fear gave way to smiles of success when he leaned over the tower wall. The rest of the rappel was closure for a mountain of effort that Nick had put in that week.
The walk with team Nick from the climbing tower to the mess hall that night was without a doubt one of the best half-mile walks I’ve ever experienced in my life. He was radiant with the pride of his accomplishments walking to the tune of his victory march. The tall trees and lake to his side with the trickles of pink light from the tired sun all clapping for him, a standing ovation of the natural universe for a boy who had moved closer to being a man. He had faced his fear and trusted his plan and his team.
These pictures are at the front of my mind because it was a place where I felt truly alive. For me this was more than a summer job, it was a way of being my true self: serving others with my passion for rock climbing and walking them through their personal cruxes was is where I’m in my zone. I learned a lot that summer, but mostly that when you do what makes you come alive it gives life to those around you.